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Kaizen (or ‘continuous improvement’) is an approach of constantly introducing small incremental changes in a business in order to improve quality and/or efficiency.
This approach assumes that employees are the best people to identify improvements in the way things are done since they see the processes in action all the time.
A firm that uses this approach therefore has to have a culture that encourages and rewards employees for their

The key features of Kaizen include:

Improvements are based on many, small changes rather than the radical changes that might arise from Research and Development
As the ideas come from the workers themselves, they are less likely to be radically different, and therefore easier to implement
Small improvements are less likely to require major capital investment than major process changes
It helps encourage workers to take ownership for their work, and can help reinforce team working, thereby improving worker motivation

Whilst staff suggestions can help to enrich the work for many employees, Kaizen can be seen as an unrelenting process.
Some firms set targets for individuals or for teams to come up with a minimum number of ideas in a period of time. Employees can find this to be an unwelcome pressure, as it becomes increasingly difficult to find further scope for improvement.
Some firms, especially Japanese-owned, conduct quality improvement sessions in the workers’ own time, which can lead to resentment unless there is appropriate recognition and reward for suggestions.

JIT aims to ensure that inputs into the production process only arrive when they are needed. Implemented successfully, stock levels of raw materials, components, work in progress and finished goods can be kept to a minimum.
This requires a carefully planned scheduling and flow of resources through the production process. Modern manufacturing firms use sophisticated production scheduling software to plan production for each period of time, which includes ordering the correct stock.
Supplies are delivered right to the production line only when they are needed. E.g. a car manufacturing plant might receive exactly the right number and type of tyres for one day’s production, and the supplier would be expected to deliver them to the correct loading bay on the production line within a very narrow time slot.

ADVANTAGES

Lower stock holding means a reduction in storage space which saves rent and insurance costs
As stock is only obtained when it is needed, less working capital is tied up in stock
There is less likelihood of stock perishing, becoming obsolete or out of date
Avoids the build-up of unsold finished product that can occur with sudden changes in demand

DISADVANTAGES

There is little room for mistakes as minimal stock is kept for re-working faulty product
Production is very reliant on suppliers and if stock is not delivered on time, the whole production schedule can be delayed
There is no spare finished product available to meet unexpected orders, because all product is made to meet actual orders – however, JIT is a very responsive method of production

An approach to management that focuses on cutting out waste, whilst ensuring quality.
Lean production aims to cut costs by making the business more efficient and responsive to market needs.

The lean approach to managing operations is really about:

The concept of lean production is an incredibly powerful one for any business that wants to become and/or remain competitive.

Less waste therefore means lower costs, which is an essential part of any business being competitive.

Similar to batch methods - except that the problem of rest/idle production/batch queuing is taken away.
Flow has been defined as a "method of production organisation where the task is worked on continuously or where the processing of material is continuous and progressive,"The aims of flow methods are:- Improved work & material flow - Reduced need for labour skills - Added value / completed work faster
Flow methods mean that as work on a task at a particular stage is complete, it must be passed directly to the next stage for processing without waiting for the remaining tasks in the "batch". When it arrives at the next stage, work must start immediately on the next process. In order for the flow to be smooth, the times that each task requires on each stage must be of equal length and there should be no movement off the flow production line. In theory, therefore, any fault or error at a particular stage

MUST:

There must be substantially constant demand - If demand is unpredictable or irregular, then the flow production line can lead to a substantial build up of stocks and possibility storage difficulties.
The product and/or production tasks must be standardised - Flow methods are inflexible - they cannot deal effectively with variations in the product.
Materials used in production must be to specification and delivered on time - Since the flow production line is working continuously, it is not a good idea to use materials that vary in style, form or quality. Similarly, if the required materials are not available, then the whole production line will come to a close - with potentially serious cost consequences.
Each operation in the production flow must be carefully defined - and recorded in detail
The output from each stage of the flow must conform to quality standards - Since the output from each stage moves forward continuously, there is no room for sub-standard output to be "re-worked''.

Requires considerable planning, particularly in ensuring that the correct production materials are delivered on time and that operations in the flow are of equal duration.
E.g. the manufacture of motor cars, chocolates and televisions.

ADVANTAGES

Flow production is capital intensive (uses a high proportion of machinery in relation to workers)
High number of products can roll off assembly lines at very low cost
Firms can benefit from economies of scale, which should lower the cost per unit of production.

DISADVANTAGES

With so much machinery it is very difficult to alter the production process. This makes production inflexible and means that all products have to be very similar or standardised and cannot be tailored to individual tastes.
The work can be pretty boring for employees involved. Keeping staff motivated is therefore an important issue for management.

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